Now, more than a decade later, Alabama's prison population is still nearly double its capacity. Meanwhile, Texas has become a model for "smart on crime" prison reform as it has stabilized its prison population, reduced recidivism, decreased crime rates and saved money. Texas, though, did have the benefit of a budget surplus and not having to stare down the barrel of federal court orders.

Texas solved a problem before it had one. Alabama failed to solve a problem it was having – and still has. A side-by-side timeline of the two states' prison reforms between 2003 and 2011 show their respective successes and failures.

As state legislators prepare for the 2015 session, understanding what went into the formation of the Texas model is critical. Because, following the Lone Star State might be the linchpin for avoiding federal intervention and reducing the state's burgeoning prison population.

The Alabama Sentencing Commission, created in 2000 to propose prison reforms, released its first report.

Legislation proposed by the commission is defeated. The bills would have raised the threshold for a theft to be considered a felony and would have given judges the option to assign low-risk drug offenders to drug treatment instead of prison.

2004

Alabama

The 1,400 inmates sent to a Mississippi private prison returned to Alabama.

Several bills supported by the Alabama Sentencing Commission were defeated. The bills would have provided additional funding for prisons and community corrections. Another bill would have created voluntary sentencing guidelines that would have recommended shorter sentences for nonviolent offenders.

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Alabama prisons

Through a series of interactive workshops, people shared their concerns about crowded prisons, listed possible actions and identified costs and consequences. What emerged from this exercise are these three possible approaches.